Letters from Harold Edward 'Pompey' Elliott to his family June 1918 - October 1918 - Part 1

France
1/6/18
My dearest Katie,
Today has been
just a glorious day. Just like
this time last year I rode out amongst
the lovely woods that smell so
sweet & fresh all round you as
you ride. It is a lovely ^beautiful
country at this time of
year. We marched back out
of the line yesterday for a
rest - all this Division
I have not seen Stewart
& Marshall yet but I
know they are very well
& Neil Freeman too. All
my people here are well
too. We have such a lovely
place to Camp. It is like being
on a picnic all the time.
The boys are in great heart
In front of us the old Bosche
is dead scared to attack 
 

but sends over quantities of
Gas Shells & you have to be
Very careful. I ^have got right over
mine again now but Genl
Tivey has still a very bad
throat. I forgot after all
to enclose little Miss Brunets
letter but do so now also ^one from
my Cousin Martha Tottenham
& one from my uncle Jim Scott
who is now in Jamaica.
There is not much news
to tell except that General
Birdwood is ^has been promoted to
Command the 5^th Army &
Genl C.C.B White goes with
him. I was never so
delighted with any thing
in my life. Genl Monash
has taken over & I have a great
admiration for him. At
present while Genl Monash 
 

is in Command of the Corps
General Birdwood still
retains the position of G.O.C.
A.I.F. but that arrangement
I am sure cannot last long
Our own little Sperriky
General^Hobbs is very much off
Color & may go away sick
any time. I would like
to get Command of this
Division if poor old Tivey
were out of it. I could ^I believe do
great things with it – I feel
sure. But Genl Birdwood has
consistently passed me over in
spite of all I have done for
him. He cannot stand
plain speaking at all.
Well darling sweetest pet
you & I must just Keep on praying
I had a lovely letter from
Mrs Marshall that consoled
me for everything. She said 
 

that when Col Duigan said
that I had decided not to
take leave every mother at
the meeting breathed freer to
Know I was still looking after
their boys. Wasn't that a lovely
consoling thing to tell me. You
must try somehow to thank
her for me Katie love.
Marshall & Stewart are
working very well ^excellently together
still.
Katie a few months back I started
to take instead of a cup of tea in
the early morning when rising a
cup of hot water & I have felt
ever so much better for it & instead 
of being constipated & getting piles. I 
never have any trouble at all. 
Will you tell the Kiddies that I 
always have it & persuade them 
to take it. It should not be luke
warm & sickly but as hot as they can 
 

I am glad you liked Jn^o Begg dearie
I think he is a good man. I always
found him straight & good man.
Roddick is very very straight
too Katie & I Know feels his position
Very Keenly poor chap. I had a
Very nice letter from poor WLyn
Katie dear - I will send it to you
when I've answered it. I think
they misunderstand ^her the poor Kid
somehow. You will be good & loving to
her Katie dear I Know.
I told you about my saving the
wonderfull collection of Butterflies.
Well I got them away all safely
& now I got such a nice letter from
the Professor of Entomology at
the Paris Museum. He talked
about rewarding me in some
way but I suppose ^by making me
a Director or Honorary Governor
of the Museum or something but I ^wrote &
told him that I had no need to be 
 

rewarded for what anyone should do.
in the interests of Science. It
appears it is Second most
Complete collection of Lepidoptera
( i.e. Moths & Butterflies) in the
world. The only other to compare
with it is that of the millionaire
Lord Rothschild & it is worth
hundreds of thousands of francs
probably ₤30,000 to ₤50,000. In
fact he says it is priceless for
many of the rarer specimens are
practically irreplaceable - they are
so scarce & hard to find. I am
sending the letter to Mrs Edwards
to Keep for me darling sweetest
If anything happens to me she will
send you all the letters I have
given her to Keep.
Your next letter is dated the
28^th March in which you tell me
about the ^Depot entertainment. ^Capt Trainor
is a bit of a "Trick" isnt he 
 

Condy is a nice little Chap. I am
glad you met him. I quite agree
that the good opinion of officers & men
is far better than decorations &
honors. Quite a lot of my boys here
think I was very unfairly treated
over the Polygon Wood Show – My
Brigade did much better than any
others & nearly every Brigadier
but me got honors at New Year
Now there is this last Show which
have made people talk about me
more than ever. Unless something
comes of this one it will be very
plain that I dont get a fair
deal as I have ^not had all along
but it is better to be like that
than have people wonder how
you came to get a decoration
as I heard some speak of Tivey’s
C.B. & Dick Courtneys too &
several others  
 

Tell Mrs Layh
that Bert is just the picture of
health & happiness & is just my
right hand man now that Cam Stewart
is a General himself & Chas
Denehy is my left hand man
& a mighty good one too.
Ackeroyd has made his way
back too. He salutes with his left
hand, his right is pretty useless
still but he bluffed the Doctors
& got back again all right That
is the spirit which will win
us the war in spite of all. 
 

Katie but just ^I fear I am becoming a crotchetty old
thing that sorts up his brave boys
when they don't do things properly.
but somehow they seem to Know that
I love even the worst of them & value
each drop of their blood far more than
I would weigh gold if it was at
my disposal as their lives & limbs
are now. I am so glad poor old
Nana is going away for a change
That is the best thing that could be
done. Only she should have gone
to Tassy or Warnambool or somewhere
where she'd have old friends to meet
& talk to. I will try to get to
Ullapool next leave. It will be
something to tell her about when I
write. Mind you Keep your
own promise to go off for little
trips. What about Healesville
You can think of me good there
you Know, Do you remember how 
 

Isn't that Dhusach a darling Keeping
right at the top of her class like
that. Tell her I'll love her so much
soon She is so good that I will just
have to send her something nice
but it is so hard to Know what
to send her – I think sometime I
will get her a dear little watch
& ask her just to Keep it for Dida
until she is eighteen. I dont like
wee girls wearing jewelry - do you
but I should like to send her
something now. I sent the laddie
a collection of Badges off Soldiers
caps put on a belt for him. It
only cost me 5 francs  3/6 too so
it was cheap enough – My groom
collected them for the laddie & I just
paid him the few pence each of them
cost him to get them from the Tommies
I am sure the laddie will
do equally as well when he is